


Even In Death May You Be Triumphant

by Anonymous



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Blood Sharing, Canon-Typical Violence, Cirque du Freak AU, Descriptions of Blood, Fake Character Death, Gen, Guilt, Mentor/Protégé, New Adult, Non-Consensual Blood Drinking, Reluctant Mentor, Roommates, Vampaneze, Vampires, dark impulses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-16
Updated: 2021-03-16
Packaged: 2021-03-24 12:21:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30072162
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Octavia was woken by the soft rustling of dirt being moved above her. The sound was methodical, growing louder and closer, before the thud of the shovel hitting her coffin lid signaled the start of her new life. Indra had come for her.OROctavia and Indra Vampire AU based on the Cirque du Freak series (Mainly the Vampire Blood Trilogy)
Relationships: Octavia Blake & Indra
Comments: 3
Kudos: 5
Collections: TROPED: Madness 2.0





	Even In Death May You Be Triumphant

Octavia was woken by the soft rustling of dirt being moved above her. The sound was methodical, growing louder and closer, before the thud of the shovel hitting her coffin lid signaled the start of her new life. Indra had come for her.  
“It’s about time,” Octavia chastised, as the older Vampire pried the lid off the coffin. Octavia’s criticism was met by a stern glare, the same look Indra made when blooding the girl. Octavia could see the scars on Indra’s fingertips as she extended her hand, and Octavia couldn't help but look at her own fingertip scars. The blooding they performed a few days ago was painful and as the Vampire blood from Indra’s fingers mingled with her own it burned like fire through her veins. Indra told her many don’t survive the ritual. But Octavia did.  
The frustration on Indra’s face was palpable, and Octavia reminded herself to be more serious. The next eternity would go pretty damn slow if Indra didn’t like her.  
“I should have never blooded a child,” Indra murmured, just loud enough for Octavia to hear.  
“I’m not a child, Indra! I’m 18 now and I’ll be 18 forever, so don’t forget it.”  
Indra’s short, harsh laugh caught Octavia off guard.  
“For all your scheming and blackmailing and research-” Indra practically spits the word, “-you are still ignorant of our world, girl.” She turned on her heel and walked away from the grave at a brisk pace, as Octavia hurried to follow her. She passed her mother’s grave, already crumbling and decrepit, even though it had only been a few years.  
“The hell do you mean ‘ignorant’?” she grumbled. “I knew enough to find you, didn’t I?” She wiggled her fingers at her mentor. “I knew enough to recognize the scars you had.”  
“An old book of myths is hardly filled with facts. You know nothing of our culture, of our abilities.” Indra turned to face Octavia, locking gazes intently. “You don’t understand what I had to give up to blood you. I’ll be banned from the Mountain, from the Clan, for blooding a child. And yet I did because of your meddling. You are only a Half-Vampire until the blood completely takes you. You will age one year for every five human years. When you are fully blooded, as I am, you will age one year every ten human years.” She started walking again. “I only hope you are less annoying by then. Now climb on my back. I’ll Flit us to my-” Indra paused and scowled, “-OUR apartment.”  
Octavia wrestled with whether she should ask what Flitting was. She was desperate to prove herself, but she hated not knowing things. Hated feeling like a child. But she had given everything up for this, even Bellamy. She had to be the best Vampire she could be.  
“What’s…. Flitting?”  
Indra looked back at her, eyes soft, for just a moment.  
“Flitting is combining a Vampire’s natural speed with magic. It makes us move very fast, almost invisible to the human eye.”  
She knelt down, allowing Octavia to awkwardly climb onto her teacher’s back.  
“Don’t worry, I will teach you once you are Full Blooded.”

“This will be your home while you act as my assistant.”  
The apartment was bland, with old wooden floors and dingy wallpaper. It reminded Octavia of the small motel room she shared with Bellamy after their mother died. The windows were bolted shut, with the blinds permanently drawn. After all, Indra couldn’t survive long in the sun.  
As she looked around, Octavia noticed something was missing.  
“Is there only one room?”  
Indra blinked at her.  
“I was not expecting to have use for more than one.”  
Octavia glanced away, heat working its way up her neck. Of course Indra hadn’t planned for her to be there. She all but forced the Vampire to take her as an assistant out of the blue, tracking her down and cornering her when Indra traveled through her small hometown. Her mind drifted to TonDC and to her old life. To her brother. To the way he sobbed at her funeral, begging her to wake up. The way she could hear him but couldn’t move to comfort him, to hug him one more time. It’s a good thing Indra drugged her, or everything would have been ruined.  
Indra dropped her bag and motioned toward the couch in the main room.  
“You can sleep here. We won’t be here much anyway. There is much training to do.”  
“I’m ready for anything you can throw at me,” Octavia insisted confidently.  
Indra laughed, but it didn’t lack warmth this time.  
“We will see, child. We will see.”

They huddled together in the shadows atop a nearby building, watching the lanky teen turn from the busy main street into the perpendicular alley. Her first meal.  
Octavia kept watch as Indra leapt down in front of him, grabbing his chin, and exhaling deeply into his face before he had a chance to make a sound. He slumped to the ground in a heap and Octavia hurried to catch her mentor as she dragged the boy behind the nearby dumpster.  
“Vampire breath can be a powerful sedative, but you must be aware of it’s limits. Not all will fall as quickly as this one.”  
Octavia nodded sharply, making a mental note of the ability, but she couldn’t take her eyes off the teen in front of her. He looked so helpless, shaggy brown hair splayed on the ground, a pair of almost comically large goggles hanging limply around his neck. He looked pathetic. Human.  
Unlike her.  
Indra made a small incision in his wrist with her sharp fingernail, squeezing it slightly to start the blood flowing.  
“I thought Vampires drank from the neck, you know, with like… fangs?”  
Indra looked up from her work, and Octavia could feel the usual burn of disappointment in her mentor’s glare.  
“We don’t have fangs, child,” she said, shortly. “But the bleeding location is up to the individual. I find that the occasional scar on the wrist doesn’t draw attention to itself.”  
Octavia took another mental note as she grimaced. She really was ignorant of Vampire customs and starting to get tired of making a fool of herself.  
Indra took a drink from the boy, then pulled out two glass vials. She held them up to the wrist and squeezed, filling them with the deep red liquid. As she stepped back and corked the vials, Indra motioned for Octavia to take her turn. The girl knelt by the body and brought his wrist up to her lips. Time for her first feed.  
Octavia took a deep pull, letting the thick blood coat her mouth before swallowing, the metallic taste overwhelming her senses. It was the best thing she had ever tasted. She took another mouthful, and as she felt the viscous liquid settle in her stomach, something took over her body. She had to have it all. She began squeezing the arm harder and harder, feeling her already stronger fingernails leave imprints in the skin. Feeling the flesh bruise under her strength. Still, she needed more.  
“You’ve taken enough, child,” came a voice from behind her. But it felt distant, unimportant. She hadn’t had nearly enough yet. The bones in the arm started to crack under her strength, as if the blood she was drinking was making her stronger. She liked feeling stronger.  
Suddenly, she was being pulled backwards. Away from the body. Away from her food. Octavia spun and took a swipe at whatever was taking her away from her meal, only to have her wrist caught by a lightning fast grab. Her body slammed into the brick wall of the alley and Octavia felt the air escape her lungs before she could make a sound. She fell to the floor, coughing and gasping for air, only to be met by a hand to her throat.  
“We do not kill them. We do not take more than we need. We are not Vampaneze.” The pressure on her throat vanished and Octavia was staring at her teacher standing over her, still wheezing in pain.  
“These will sustain us another month, and the boy will still live.” Octavia’s stare locked on the blood filled vials in Indra’s hand. She still hungered for it. Still needed it.  
“Blood is necessary, but it is not all there is, child.” Indra slid the vials in her jacket pocket, then produced a wallet from another. She extended the wallet to Octavia. “Take this to the grocery store near the apartment,” Indra instructed as Octavia gingerly reached out for the wallet. “Purchase us a few steaks, and I will show you how to curb your bloodlust.”  
Octavia watched as Indra knelt back over the boy, spit into her hand, and rubbed the spit on the open wound.  
“Humans are not lesser beings, Octavia, just different than us. They are not prey or livestock. They are conscious beings with lives and families.”  
The wounds began to make a sizzling hiss as new skin began rapidly forming over the exposed flesh, leaving nothing but thin, pale scar tissue.  
“We cannot reproduce through biological means. The blooding renders us infertile. That is why we blood new Vampires. It is the only way to create new Vampires. We need them.”  
Octavia looked at her teacher once again, but she didn’t find any hostility or hatred in her eyes. She only saw kindness and pity. And for the first time, Octavia began to really understand the life she had rushed into.

Octavia set the groceries down on the counter, disturbing the dust that had settled there in the short time she was gone. Indra would expect her to clean again, as well as make the dinner she just returned home with. Indra expected her to do everything, and it was really beginning to get old.  
After three months of cohabitation with her mentor, the luster of her new situation was beginning to fade. Being a Vampire’s assistant was more akin to being a personal errand runner and full time maid. It made sense at first. After all, Octavia was still only half-blooded, which meant she could still walk in the sun without worry. But that meant she had to do everything around town and around the house while Indra slept through the day, leaving Octavia tired at night, when Indra wanted to begin training. If it could even be called that. All they did was hand to hand combat. And Indra didn’t believe in taking it easy on her new apprentice. At least Octavia could tell her healing factor was beginning to kick in. Broken ribs only took three weeks to heal, instead of six. Lucky her.  
Octavia flopped down on the couch, flipping the tv on as she tossed her legs over the arm. As the soft glow of the local news began to illuminate the small apartment, she began drifting off. A breaking news story flashed across the screen, something about a body found behind a school downtown, another in a string of strange murders. Her eyes closed heavily and sleep came swiftly.

Octavia awoke with a start, her eyes opening to nearly pitch darkness. She sat up quickly, looking around the apartment for signs of Indra. If she was late to training, she’d have hell to pay. Her eyes adjusted quickly, another benefit of her blooding, and as she scanned the room, she found a note on the fridge.  
“Left to feed. I will bring some back for you.”  
She could practically hear Indra’s voice in the short, curt words. It’s not like she couldn’t use the sleep, but Octavia had relished the thought of feeding again. Indra hadn’t let her feed since the first night, and the reserve blood Indra brought back never tasted the same as that first feed. Their relationship had been strained lately. The two never got to speak to anyone else. Indra insisted it was too risky, which Octavia argued with. But she never won the arguments. Indra was the teacher and she was the student.  
That didn’t mean it wasn’t dumb.

“That man will be our next feed.”  
Octavia felt the air catch in her throat when she saw him, dark curls bouncing as he exited the building across the street. Her brother, Bellamy. The same brother that had buried her in the grave plot next to their mother just 6 months ago. He was here, in Arkadia City. If he saw her, everything would be ruined.  
“I...” Her voice trailed off, lost in thought. She thought she’d never see him again, but here he was, and he was supposed to be her next feed. Time seemed to freeze around her at the thought of consuming his blood. She thought about how it would taste, coating her taste buds and lighting her every sense on fire. She hated herself for it.  
“I can’t, Indra. Forgive me.”  
Indra stared at her for a long time.  
“And why can’t you? You’ve been begging me to let you feed for months now.”  
Octavia felt the tears well up in her eyes, but she couldn’t let Bellamy leave her gaze. His freckled face was a little paler than she remembered. He was wearing the old, tattered grey cardigan she had gotten him for his last birthday. She knew he hated it, but he would never admit it. So why was he wearing it now?  
She leapt from the top of the building, landing easily in the alley nearby. Her body was finally growing accustomed to her newfound agility and strength. She sprinted to the building Bellamy just left and entered the lobby. The secretary in the lobby jumped with a start as Octavia flung the door open.  
“Oh, hi there,” she began, voice tainted with fake kindness. “Is there something I can help you with?”  
Octavia closed the distance between them quickly, perhaps too quickly. The secretary was clearly uncomfortable. Maybe even threatened. But she had to know.  
“That man, the guy that just left, what was he here for?”  
“Oh, Mr. Blake? He just dropped off his donation.”  
Bell didn’t have money to be donating.If anything, he should be the one receiving charity.  
“Donation?” Her hurried confusion made the words clumsy. “To what?”  
The secretary looked increasingly concerned with every passing second.  
“The Griffin Research Society. Mr. Blake is helping fund my mom’s research into brain aneurysm detection and prevention.”  
Octavia’s heart stopped. Brain aneurysm. That’s what the potion Indra gave her imitated. He was here because of her.  
“Are you ok, ma’am?”  
The room spun around her. She felt her feet tilt crazily and she braced herself to hit the floor.  
She landed in someone’s arms.  
“Octavia,” Indra’s stern voice was tinged with concern. “Come with me, child.”  
She couldn’t help herself. Octavia started crying, hot tears streaming down her cheeks. She had abandoned him for her own selfish wants. He was wasting money because of her. He was wearing that stupid cardigan because of her. She hated herself.  
“Shhhh, child. Let’s go home now. Everything will be ok.”

The only light in the apartment was the tv, flashing images of the recent murders. Octavia sat quietly, watching, as Indra paced the room.  
“If your brother is in town, then we will need to leave immediately. You cannot risk being discovered.”  
She continued to watch the news, not listening to her teacher. 8 bodies in 3 months, the most prolific serial killer in the city’s history. The news anchor spoke about the murders. Found drained of all blood. Assumed to be a cult thing.  
Indra stopped in her tracks, whipping around to see that tv.  
“What did they say?”  
“Drained of blood.”  
There was a tense silence between the two of them. Indra had told her about the Vampaneze only once. Another race of Vampire, the Vampaneze don’t believe in moderation. They kill every time they feed. Vampaneze are the reason the entire Vampire race almost went extinct. They are to be killed on sight, according to Vampire Law.  
Indra’s voice broke the silence.  
“We must stop it.”  
Octavia nodded once in agreement. Her guilt about leaving Bell would have to wait. They were going to fight the only thing equal in power to a Vampire.

“Most Vampaneze live in the sewers beneath their hunting grounds. They are hideously deformed from their gluttony. They cannot live amongst humans as we do.”  
Indra moved the manhole cover with ease, and the two descended into the darkness.  
Octavia’s eyes adjusted quickly, but her increased sense of smell was overwhelmed by the stink of raw sewage. She coughed in the thick air.  
“The stench of decay.” Indra began moving swiftly through the sewer tunnel. “It means we are close.”  
Octavia held her nose as she followed.  
The two turned corner after corner, led by Indra’s even stronger sense of smell until they were met by a sight that would be forever burned into Octavia’s mind.  
The man’s skin was purple and slightly swollen, and deep red eyes stared at Octavia from behind his long red hair. He crouched over a body, hands deep in the chest of his victim, blood coating the victim’s tattered grey cardigan.  
The Vampaneze smiled a wide smile, blood dripping from his open mouth as he greeted them.  
“Ah, come to interrupt my meal, Vampire? And here I thought more food had stumbled in after me.”  
Octavia blinked and Indra was at the Vampaneze’s throat, her hand caught by his, and the two of them flew backwards a few feet. Their movements were too fast for her to follow. Indra had been holding back when training Octavia, but she was clearly going all out to kill the Vampaneze.  
The two blurs continued their fight down the tunnel, but Octavia couldn’t follow them, frozen in shocked realization. The victim was wearing a grey cardigan. She willed herself to look down at him again, but her brain wasn’t responding  
“Octavia?” The cry at her feet was weak. So very weak.  
Tears welled up in her eyes at the familiar voice and her eyes finally met Bellamy’s. Her big brother laid in a crumpled heap, surrounded by his own blood, desperately reaching out to her.  
She took his hand, not minding the blood smearing across her own. She couldn’t stop crying. Her brother was dying and there was nothing she could do about it.  
“O?”  
“I’m here, Bell. I’m here.”  
His eyes focused on hers briefly before glazing over again. His face twisted with confusion and pain.  
“How?”  
“I’m so sorry Bell. I left you and this is all my fault.”  
Her tears mixed with his blood, sliding down his outstretched arm.  
“He’s losing too much blood, Octavia. He won’t last much longer.”  
Indra’s voice pierced through the cloud in her head. She tore her gaze from her brother and found her mentor, clothing torn from the Vampaneze’s sharp fingernails. Indra knelt by Octavia’s side, and set her hand on Bellamy’s shoulder.  
“If it is of any comfort to you, the monster that did this to you has been killed. He cannot hurt anyone else.”  
Bellamy was quiet for a moment before he nodded slightly.  
“I know you do not understand this situation, but know this: Your sister is in my care, Bellamy Blake. She insisted I train her, and I plan to do so. No harm will come to her while she is my assistant.”  
Bellamy nodded again, his gaze not leaving Indra’s face. Indra shifted to look at Octavia.  
“You can preserve his memory, child. Feed from him. Take his final breath and his memory will live on in you. It is an ancient power of ours, and it is the last kindness you can do for him.”  
Octavia was numb. Her brother was dying in her arms, all because she wanted to run off and be a Vampire. She pointed him towards his death.  
“I love you, O.”  
Bellamy’s hand rested softly on her cheek, stroking his thumb up and down her cheek.  
Octavia took his hand and pressed a fingernail into his wrist, piercing the skin. She brought it to her lips.  
“I love you, Bell.”  
Octavia felt more than heard her brother’s last breath, the soft flutter of life leaving his body.  
“May I give your brother the honor of a Vampire death prayer?”  
Octavia nodded once.  
Indra placed her index and pinky fingers on Bellamy’s eyes, closing them, then placed her thumb on his mouth.  
“Even in death may you be triumphant.”

“It is against Vampire Law to Flit to The Mountain. It will be a long trip.”  
Octavia looked up at the moon, the only light in the dark sky.  
“I have no family left,” she said softly. “Bell was all I had.”  
“Not anymore, Octavia. Now you have the Clan. And I promise, one day soon you will truly think of us as your family.”  
The two began walking, leaving the town behind. Leaving Bellamy behind.  
She remembered the day she gave him the cardigan, the way his face crinkled in poorly disguised disappointment. But now there was something else mixed with the memory. A feeling of pride and fondness welling up deep inside her as she stroked the faded sweater. A feeling of love. Bellamy’s love.  
Bellamy’s memories. And Octavia smiled.

**Author's Note:**

> Ok y'all, I really loved this one and I hope that came across! Cirque du Freak (or The Saga of Darren Shan) was one of my favorite series growing up, and in hindsight, it was WAY to dark for someone my age to read!  
> This was written for Troped Madness 2021 Round 1, and the tropes were:  
> Character: Octavia Blake  
> Theme: New Adult  
> Trope 1: Roommates  
> Trope 2: Based on a Children's Series
> 
> As I mentioned in the Summary, this fic is based on the first trilogy of the Cirque du Freak series, entitled "Vampire Blood"


End file.
